Richmond Astronomical Society

NASA’s Fermi Catches Thunderstorms Hurling Antimatter into Space

Jan 12th, 2011 | By | Category: Events

Scientists using NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have detected beams of antimatter produced above thunderstorms on Earth, a phenomenon never seen before.

Scientists think the antimatter particles were formed in a terrestrial gamma-ray flash (TGF), a brief burst produced inside thunderstorms and shown to be associated with lightning. It is estimated that about 500 TGFs occur daily worldwide, but most go undetected.

 

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  1. What a thrill to know that antimatter is spewing from thunderclouds produced from terrestrial gamma-ray flash (TGF). I have always wondered what was produced from lightning of any kind. Especially when seen from space.

    The other interesting aspect of terrestrial gamma-ray flash or TGF is that they have been identified and studied in the recent past. Follow the link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrestrial_gamma-ray_flash for more information.

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